10 I am the LORD your God,
who brought you up out of Egypt.
Open wide your mouth and I will fill it.
11 "But my people would not listen to me;
Israel would not submit to me.
12 So I gave them over to their stubborn hearts
to follow their own devices.
1. What had God already done for Israel?
Brought them out of Egypt
2. What did God promise to His people?
Feed/provide for them
3. How did the people respond?
They would not submit
4. What did God do?
He turned them over to their own devices
13 "If my people would only listen to me,
if Israel would only follow my ways,
14 how quickly I would subdue their enemies
and turn my hand against their foes!
5. What could have been true had Israel listened to and followed God?
They wouldn't have had to fight - God would have fought for them.
7 So, as the Holy Spirit says:
"Today, if you hear his voice,
8 do not harden your hearts
as you did in the rebellion,
during the time of testing in the wilderness,
9 where your ancestors tested and tried me,
though for forty years they saw what I did.
10 That is why I was angry with that generation;
I said, 'Their hearts are always going astray,
and they have not known my ways.'
11 So I declared on oath in my anger,
'They shall never enter my rest.' "
12 See to it, brothers and sisters, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. 13 But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called "Today," so that none of you may be hardened by sin's deceitfulness. 14 We have come to share in Christ, if indeed we hold firmly till the end our original conviction. 15 As has just been said:
"Today, if you hear his voice,
do not harden your hearts
as you did in the rebellion."
16 Who were they who heard and rebelled? Were they not all those Moses led out of Egypt? 17 And with whom was he angry for forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose bodies perished in the wilderness? 18 And to whom did God swear that they would never enter his rest if not to those who disobeyed? 19 So we see that they were not able to enter, because of their unbelief.
6. According to Hebrews 3.7-19
, why were the children of Israel denied entrance to the promised land?
They hardened their hearts and rebelled against God.
1. Has God changed in the way that He works with people to carry out His plans and purposes?
No. I doubt it (although He could).
2. Would you rather follow your own plans and wander around in a spiritual wilderness or follow God's ways and quickly enter a spiritual promised land?
Um... let me see. Of course, I'd prefer the spiritual promised land.
How close do you think your country is to the judgment of God?
3. I cannot understand why God has waited this long. I believe we are on the verge of a major judgment from God.
or
4. I believe we are alrady expereiencing a disciplinary judment like that described in Isaiah 5.1-7
What evidence can you list to support your answer?
9/11, declining relevance of the Church, loss of sanctity of life.
What effect does your belief have on the way you live your life?
Honestly, little.
What was the most meaningful statement or Scripture you read today?
Would you rather follow your own plans and wander around in a spiritual wilderness...?
Reword the statement or Scripture into a prayer of response to God.
Precious Lord, I want to enter the 'promised land' you have for me; help me to not be so self0centered that I would rather follow my own plans and wander around in a spiritual wilderness...?
What does God want you to do in response to today's study?
Spend time asking for God's guidance on how I should respond to Him.
Summary Statements
- Do things God's way.
- God will accomplish more in six months through a people tielded to Him than we could do in 60 years without Him.
- I am God's servant. I adjust my life to what He is about to do.
- Understanding what God is about to do where I am is more important than telling God what I want to do for Him.
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